Municipal workers call off proposed strike

Hyderabad: The representatives of various municipal workers union joint action committee have decided to call off their proposed two day strike from Tuesday, after holding talks with the Municipal Administration Secretary Navin Mittal and other officials at the Telangana Secretariat on Monday.

Representatives of INTUC, AITUC, CITU, AITUC, IFTU, BMS, HMS and other organizations, who held talks with the Secretary, have agreed to resolve the pending issues in a cordial and conducive atmosphere.

Mittal said that the State Government was in favour of enhancement of wages of the municipal workers. He assured the members that strict instructions will be given to the ULBs to ensure that the EPF, ESI remittances are done properly. The ULBs will also be ordered to immediately clear the pending wages of the workers. Sanction of double bedroom houses for the municipal workers will also be considered on priority.

The Municipal Administration Secretary also agreed for providing safety equipment for the municipal workers in all the municipalities and urban local bodies of the state. He informed the members that the government is considering setting up sanitation worker groups in all the ULBs of the state on the lines of GHMC so as to ensure that the workers are benefitted by removing the system of middlemen. He also assured them that instructions will also be given to the ULBs to pay the salaries of the workers through banks.

Representatives of the joint action committee thanked the Secretary for responding positively to their demands.